Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 20 hours ago
#ancestry #nytn #ancestry #findingyourroots #familyhistory #genealogy
Shovel teeth, hidden DNA markers, and the historical deep dives most people never hear about — this is everything I know about tracing Native ancestry, all in one place. From how 10,000 Natives got reclassified as "Colored" on paper to the Lumbee story and my own hunt for hidden heritage, this covers the traits, the records, and the research methods that actually hold up. Stick around for a conversation with Dr. Andrew Jolivette on blood quantum and the one-drop rule that goes deeper than any test result can.
What's inside:
00:00 Introduction & The Shovel Teeth Hook
01:39 Discovery: My Dentist's Reveal
03:36 The Melungeon Mystery & Shovel Teeth
10:57 Beyond Percentages: The Power of Haplogroups
13:12 Maternal (mtDNA) vs. Paternal Haplogroups
15:11 How to Find Haplogroup Results in 23andMe
19:22 Deep Dive: My Louisiana Family Tree & Lola
32:32 The Camino Royale: Louisiana and Texas Ties
36:50 Finding Francis: Unlocking a Missing Ancestor
40:12 The Goens Family & The Dawes Rolls Controversy
46:37 The Pocahontas Exception Explained 50:54 Sued for Marriage: Sorrels vs. Shields (1924)
1:02:56 Walter Pleeker & The Racial Integrity Act
1:15:06 The Findians: Finnish & Ojibwe Cultural Convergence
1:29:55 The Lumbee Tribe: A Century-Long Battle for Recognition
1:41:38 Interview: Professor Andrew Jolivette on Creole Identity
2:07:15 Citizenship vs. Peoplehood in Indian Country
2:26:42 The Future of Blood Quantum & Tribal Enrollment
Select source list:
CH 1 — SHOVEL TEETH
Scott, G.R. & C.G. Turner II. The Anthropology of Modern Human Teeth. Cambridge UP, 1997.
Hrdlička, A. "Shovel-Shaped Teeth." Am. J. Physical Anthropology 3 (1920): 429-465.
Kamberov, Y. et al. "Modeling Recent Human Evolution in Mice by Expression of a Selected EDAR Variant." Cell 152 (2013): 691-702.
CH 2 — HAPLOGROUPS
Achilli, A. et al. "The Phylogeny of the Four Pan-American mtDNA Haplogroups." PLoS ONE 3 (2008): e1764.
Reich, D. et al. "Reconstructing Native American Population History." Nature 488 (2012): 370-374.
Perego, U. et al. "Distinctive Paleo-Indian Migration Routes from Beringia." Current Biology 19 (2009): 1-8.
CH 3 — LOUISIANA / DAWES / EL CAMINO REAL
Debo, A. And Still the Waters Run: The Betrayal of the Five Civilized Tribes. Princeton UP, 1940.
Dawes Rolls, National Archives RG 75: catalog.archives.gov/id/300321
El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail: nps.gov/elte
McDonald Furman Papers (Goins family), South Caroliniana Library, USC.
CH 4 — PLECKER / RACIAL INTEGRITY ACT / SORRELLS v. SHIELDS
Act to Preserve Racial Integrity, Va. Acts 1924, Ch. 371 (Mar. 20, 1924).
Atha Sorrells v. A.T. Shields, Petition for Mandamus, Cir. Ct. Rockbridge Co., Nov. 14, 1924.
Plecker, W.A. "Surnames of Mixed Negroid Virginia Families," ca. 1943.
All three: encyclopediavirginia.org
Smith, J.D. Managing White Supremacy. UNC Press, 2002.
Rountree, H. Pocahontas's People. U. of Oklahoma Press, 1990.
CH 5 — FINDIANS
Kettu, K., M. Seppälä, M. Koutaniemi. Fintiaanien mailla [Findian Country]. WSOY, 2016.
Alanen, A. Finns in Minnesota. Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2012.
"Finnish Pioneers, Ojibwe Found Common Ground." Duluth News Tribune, July 22, 2008.
CH 6 — LUMBEE
Lumbee Act of 1956, Pub. L. 84-570, 70 Stat. 254.
Lumbee Fairness Act, signed December 2025 (NDAA FY2026).
Lowery, M.M. Lumbee Indians in the Jim Crow South. UNC Press, 2010.
H. Rept. 110-164, Lumbee Recognition Act (full history from 1899).
lumbeetribe.com/faqs-history
CH 7 — BLOOD QUANTUM / ONE-DROP / CREOLE PEOPLEHOOD (Dr. Andrew Jolivétte)
Jolivétte, A.J. Louisiana Creoles: Cultural Recovery and Mixed-Race Native American Identity. Lexington Books, 2007.
Jolivétte, A.J. Indian Blood. U. of Washington Press, 2016.
Prud'homme-Cranford, R., D. Barthé, A.J. Jolivétte, eds. Louisiana Creole Peoplehood. U. of Washington Press, 2022.
Spruhan, P. "A Legal History of Blood Quantum in Federal Indian Law to 1935." SD Law Rev. 51 (2006): 1-50.
TallBear, K. Native American DNA. U. of Minnesota Press, 2013.
Davis, F.J. Who Is Black? Penn State UP, 1991.
✅Join me OFF of Youtube
patreon.com/NYTN
💚💚Get you $50 cash back @ Rakuten rakuten.com/r/DANIEL9771
☕Send me a coffee!: ko-fi.com/nytn13#linkModal
nytonashville.com
► 👕 NYTN Merch: nytonashville.com
▶Download the first section FREE of my "Be a Good ancestor" course here:
nytonashville.com/shoplola/be-a-good-ancestor-course-digital-download-videos-bjks6
FOLLOW ME 📸
► YouTube: / @NYTN
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#ancestry #nytn #ancestry #findingyourroots #familyhistory #genealogy
Shovel teeth, hidden DNA markers, and the historical deep dives most people never hear about — this is everything I know about tracing Native ancestry, all in one place. From how 10,000 Natives got reclassified as "Colored" on paper to the Lumbee story and my own hunt for hidden heritage, this covers the traits, the records, and the research methods that actually hold up. Stick around for a conversation with Dr. Andrew Jolivette on blood quantum and the one-drop rule that goes deeper than any test result can.
What's inside:
00:00 Introduction & The Shovel Teeth Hook
01:39 Discovery: My Dentist's Reveal
03:36 The Melungeon Mystery & Shovel Teeth
10:57 Beyond Percentages: The Power of Haplogroups
13:12 Maternal (mtDNA) vs. Paternal Haplogroups
15:11 How to Find Haplogroup Results in 23andMe
19:22 Deep Dive: My Louisiana Family Tree & Lola
32:32 The Camino Royale: Louisiana and Texas Ties
36:50 Finding Francis: Unlocking a Missing Ancestor
40:12 The Goens Family & The Dawes Rolls Controversy
46:37 The Pocahontas Exception Explained 50:54 Sued for Marriage: Sorrels vs. Shields (1924)
1:02:56 Walter Pleeker & The Racial Integrity Act
1:15:06 The Findians: Finnish & Ojibwe Cultural Convergence
1:29:55 The Lumbee Tribe: A Century-Long Battle for Recognition
1:41:38 Interview: Professor Andrew Jolivette on Creole Identity
2:07:15 Citizenship vs. Peoplehood in Indian Country
2:26:42 The Future of Blood Quantum & Tribal Enrollment
Select source list:
CH 1 — SHOVEL TEETH
Scott, G.R. & C.G. Turner II. The Anthropology of Modern Human Teeth. Cambridge UP, 1997.
Hrdlička, A. "Shovel-Shaped Teeth." Am. J. Physical Anthropology 3 (1920): 429-465.
Kamberov, Y. et al. "Modeling Recent Human Evolution in Mice by Expression of a Selected EDAR Variant." Cell 152 (2013): 691-702.
CH 2 — HAPLOGROUPS
Achilli, A. et al. "The Phylogeny of the Four Pan-American mtDNA Haplogroups." PLoS ONE 3 (2008): e1764.
Reich, D. et al. "Reconstructing Native American Population History." Nature 488 (2012): 370-374.
Perego, U. et al. "Distinctive Paleo-Indian Migration Routes from Beringia." Current Biology 19 (2009): 1-8.
CH 3 — LOUISIANA / DAWES / EL CAMINO REAL
Debo, A. And Still the Waters Run: The Betrayal of the Five Civilized Tribes. Princeton UP, 1940.
Dawes Rolls, National Archives RG 75: catalog.archives.gov/id/300321
El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail: nps.gov/elte
McDonald Furman Papers (Goins family), South Caroliniana Library, USC.
CH 4 — PLECKER / RACIAL INTEGRITY ACT / SORRELLS v. SHIELDS
Act to Preserve Racial Integrity, Va. Acts 1924, Ch. 371 (Mar. 20, 1924).
Atha Sorrells v. A.T. Shields, Petition for Mandamus, Cir. Ct. Rockbridge Co., Nov. 14, 1924.
Plecker, W.A. "Surnames of Mixed Negroid Virginia Families," ca. 1943.
All three: encyclopediavirginia.org
Smith, J.D. Managing White Supremacy. UNC Press, 2002.
Rountree, H. Pocahontas's People. U. of Oklahoma Press, 1990.
CH 5 — FINDIANS
Kettu, K., M. Seppälä, M. Koutaniemi. Fintiaanien mailla [Findian Country]. WSOY, 2016.
Alanen, A. Finns in Minnesota. Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2012.
"Finnish Pioneers, Ojibwe Found Common Ground." Duluth News Tribune, July 22, 2008.
CH 6 — LUMBEE
Lumbee Act of 1956, Pub. L. 84-570, 70 Stat. 254.
Lumbee Fairness Act, signed December 2025 (NDAA FY2026).
Lowery, M.M. Lumbee Indians in the Jim Crow South. UNC Press, 2010.
H. Rept. 110-164, Lumbee Recognition Act (full history from 1899).
lumbeetribe.com/faqs-history
CH 7 — BLOOD QUANTUM / ONE-DROP / CREOLE PEOPLEHOOD (Dr. Andrew Jolivétte)
Jolivétte, A.J. Louisiana Creoles: Cultural Recovery and Mixed-Race Native American Identity. Lexington Books, 2007.
Jolivétte, A.J. Indian Blood. U. of Washington Press, 2016.
Prud'homme-Cranford, R., D. Barthé, A.J. Jolivétte, eds. Louisiana Creole Peoplehood. U. of Washington Press, 2022.
Spruhan, P. "A Legal History of Blood Quantum in Federal Indian Law to 1935." SD Law Rev. 51 (2006): 1-50.
TallBear, K. Native American DNA. U. of Minnesota Press, 2013.
Davis, F.J. Who Is Black? Penn State UP, 1991.
✅Join me OFF of Youtube
patreon.com/NYTN
💚💚Get you $50 cash back @ Rakuten rakuten.com/r/DANIEL9771
☕Send me a coffee!: ko-fi.com/nytn13#linkModal
nytonashville.com
► 👕 NYTN Merch: nytonashville.com
▶Download the first section FREE of my "Be a Good ancestor" course here:
nytonashville.com/shoplola/be-a-good-ancestor-course-digital-download-videos-bjks6
FOLLOW ME 📸
► YouTube: / @NYTN
► Facebook: / facebook.com/findinglolafilm
► Website: nytonashville.com
► X: / twitter.com/ImFindingLola
